


milkshake

by GodOfGlitter



Category: Captive Prince - C. S. Pacat
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-31
Updated: 2020-08-31
Packaged: 2021-03-06 23:07:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,760
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26216872
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GodOfGlitter/pseuds/GodOfGlitter
Summary: “Laurent.”“Hmm.”“Lau-renttt”“Yeah.”“My hair is on fire.”“There’s water in the jug, Damianos.”*Five times Damen says “I love you” first, and the one time it’s Laurent.
Relationships: Damen/Laurent (Captive Prince)
Comments: 7
Kudos: 110





	milkshake

**Author's Note:**

> Here, have yet another sample of me getting over how fucked life is right now by basically imagining myself back at college. Also, at this point, if you couldn't tell that I'm an engineer, this fic should fix that. I'm sorry in advance. 
> 
> Also, also- every once in a while, when I haven't written for weeks and am feeling generally uninspired, someone will come along and leave many kudos on my fics or comment on some of them, and that just. Makes my day (my week, my month, or even my year). This time, it was @mnad96, so thank youuuu <3
> 
> Hopefully, I can get back to writing now. Fingers crossed guys.

1.

Damen is walking down the street when he picks the phone up, which turns out to be a horrible idea (the walking, not the phone. Picking up a phone from Laurent can never be a bad idea) when he almost pushes someone into a car after hearing the loud “I GOT THE JOB!” belted out at him in a tinny voice over the speakers. It takes him a moment to recover his balance- to apologise to the pushed person, to get out of harm’s way of everyone else, to allow his ears to readjust- and in that time, the realisation dawns on him, in bits and pieces and then suddenly- Laurent’s talking about the interview for the research position he had today. And he _got it,_ he’s-

“Damen, are you even listening to me? I got the position! So yes, it’s not _technically_ a job because they’re not _technically_ paying me, but Damen imagine the exposure I’ll get- and this is Professor _Erastus_ , have I told you about his work in marine robotics? Did I mention the _beautiful_ \- I mean you have to actually look at it to really appreciate how amazing that feat of engineering is, but Ocean One is just such a gorgeous robot- and the hands, my gods the hands- _Damen are you there?”_

On some subconscious level, Damen knows he looks very idiotic- this giant, muscly, tall man leaning against the wall like he’ll swoon if it isn’t there (which could happen, let’s not discount the possibility) grinning like he’s just won the lottery. Or the hand of an angel in marriage. (He feels like it’s a little bit of both). It’s just that he _loves_ it when Laurent gets passionate about his major- it’s one of the things that attracted him to Laurent in the first place. And the thing is, Damen understands approximately 23% of the things Laurent talks about on any good day- when he actually _is_ paying attention, which is difficult enough to do when presented with distractions like Laurent’s wildly gesticulating hands, the way his eyes become more and more animated the longer he talks, the way his face seems to light up from within, like he’s found the secret to happiness on this planet and he wants nothing more than to share it with Damen. But now, when he can hear Laurent’s genuine excitement despite the distance that separates them, he’s helpless to do anything but drown in his voice, and stay happy that way.

“I love you.” He says in response, effectively stopping the winding rant Laurent has started. The declaration is met with stunned- and slightly awed- silence, like it so often is- because somehow, despite how long they’ve been dating, Laurent is still so unused to the word _love,_ especially pertaining to himself, and that’s a source of endless fond amusement on Damen’s part. _He’s like a cat_ , Damen thinks- like a growling, clawing kitten that’s shocked into stillness when someone risks their hand to pet it, before melting completely and letting all the affection in the world be showered over it. “I love you, and I knew this would happen, and I want you to come to _Brewed_ right now so I can congratulate you properly and you can tell me all about what you’ll be doing over hot chocolate.” He continues, feeling his heart flip at the sound of Laurent’s sharp intake- gods, he loves this man so much.

“Um. Oh-Okay. I’ll be there in fifteen. Don’t get lost on your way there, you big brute.” Replies Laurent, and Damen didn’t think his smile could get any dopier, but here we are. It’s not like Laurent hasn’t said it back, ever- of course he has, multiple times, softly, quietly, each word hanging heavily, meaningfully in the air so Damen can absorb it into himself and vow to never let go- but more often, this is how he responds- with silence, and disbelief, and a sharp quip laced with everything he feels too overwhelmed to say, for now.

Shaking his head fondly, Damen locks his phone and keeps it back in his pocket, before changing his route and making his way to their favourite cafe on campus and preparing himself for an hour long talk on _human dexterity_ and _degrees of freedom_ and other engineering terms that will fly over his head.

And Damen realises he really doesn’t mind at all.

2.

It’s been a tiring day, at the end of a tiring week, and all Damen wants in life is to curl up in bed, preferably with Laurent in it, and never move a single muscle again. He loves football- of course he does, it’s what got him into college, what gave his life purpose, even what made him meet Laurent- but right now, he’s sure if he saw a football he’d crush it with his bare hands. He’s been practicing non-stop with his team, in preparation for the major game next week- against Arles Academy, with whom their rivalry is so old and legendary that actual campfires are constructed on game day to retell the story of the “Axe”, or the trophy the winning team gets to take home. It’s been a decade since Akielos has won- but Damen plans to change that this year.

When he enters home- a small, cozy apartment he shares with Laurent on the north side of campus- he’s immediately hit by the scent of dinner, which makes his stomach growl as he remembers he hasn’t eaten anything since noon. Dropping his bag on the floor near the entrance and taking his shoes off, Damen walks towards the kitchen, where he’s met with a sight that never fails to make his heart stop, no matter how many times he comes home to it- Laurent, clad in one of Damen’s old shirts that’s way too big on his slender frame, headphones on as he cooks, hips wiggling playfully along to the song that’s playing in his ears. Allowing himself a moment to appreciate the view- which is quite marvellous, thank you- Damen moves behind Laurent, being purposefully quiet so that when he finally winds his arms around him, Laurent jumps in his spot in the most adorable way possible.

“Hi.” He says, feeling his first genuine smile of the day bloom onto his face before he leans in to capture Laurent’s lips with his- and _oh,_ it’s only been a few hours but he’s missed this. Laurent melts into the kiss almost immediately, abandoning the spatula he’s been holding on the shelf in order to wind his hands into Damen’s hair and pull him close, closer, until Damen doesn’t know where he begins and Laurent ends and it’s all just a glorious sensation of _happiness_ washing over him and Damen never wants this moment to end.

“Hi,” Laurent breathes back once they pull apart, cheeks slightly flushed and eyes blown wide, like he’s surprised at what Damen has done even though this has happened enough times for it to have become a routine, of sorts. He’s still leaning into Damen, arms wound behind his neck and chest pressed against his in the most delicious way possible, but he steps away soon enough (much to Damen’s disappointment) and ushers Damen to the small table in their kitchen, pinning him there with a playful look and an order to _stay_.

As if Damen could ever disobey.

“So, how was practice?” Laurent asks, grabbing the abandoned spatula with a funny look on his face before resuming stirring whatever it is that’s cooking on the stove right now. And it’s all so _domestic_ \- the sheer simplicity of being able to come back home to eat dinner with the love of his life, of being able to render him speechless with something as small as a kiss, of the knowledge that _he gets to have this forever_ \- that the first words that spill out of Damen’s mouth aren’t a response but “I love you.”

He sees the way Laurent starts a little, almost dropping the spatula into the pot (of course he doesn’t actually do it, Laurent is too self-controlled for things like that) before a small, giddy smile grows onto his lips, and Damen falls in love again for the third time in ten minutes because that smile right there is his and his alone, and if that doesn’t say “I love you too” almost as well as words then he doesn’t know what does.

“Practice was so gruelling, I think my thighs have actually died…” he begins, filling the quiet kitchen air with the sound of his own meaningless ramble. Next to him, Laurent turns, listening with half an ear as he resumes cooking with that smile on his face, and slowly, Damen feels all of his tiredness melt away, until all that’s left is the softest pink love.

3.

“Laurent.”

“Hmm.”

“Lau-renttt”

“Yeah.”

“My hair is on fire.”

“There’s water in the jug, Damianos.”

Damen huffs, throwing his hands up for good measure as he settles back into his chair, letting his pen drop onto the blank page of his notebook. He’s never been one for sitting in one place and studying for hours, always more of the sporty, outdoorsy type- but he’s changed for the better since he’s started living with Laurent. Laurent, who is so sweetly nerdy in the most attractive way (Damen is pretty sure at this point his attraction to Laurent’s intelligence is an actual kink, but who knows), who actually completes his readings on time and not in a hurry one day before class, who genuinely _enjoys_ academic pursuit. And it’s not like Damen’s a bad student- despite being basically a full time football player, his grades are pretty good, among the best in his class- but even he has to admit his study sessions with Laurent have helped, a lot.

Still- it’s a hot, slow day, and he feels slightly off centre since he didn’t have practice today, and the last thing he wants to do right now is sit and go through the life cycles of gymnosperms and angiosperms.

He hates botany. He wishes he’d never taken it as an elective in the first place, but here he is- spending his Friday night actually studying. About flowers.

“Laurent if you don’t look up and pay attention to me I’ll-“ he begins, before catching sight of the tiny smirk on Laurent’s lips and and feeling a devious idea spark in the back of his mind. For the next few minutes, he sits silently, letting Laurent get back into his comfort zone- before quietly reaching his arm out to place it on his thigh-

“Absolutely the fuck not, Damen. Some of us actually have to study.” Laurent says, arresting Damen’s movement without even lifting a finger or looking up from his book. _Gods_ , he thinks. _I love him so much I might actually combust from it all_.

He says as much to Laurent, delighting in the generous dusting of pink on his cheeks that’s highlighted by the bulbs above them, before closing his notebook with an air of finality and pulling his phone out to scroll mindlessly through social media till Laurent is done and they can finally, _finally_ do something else.

(Not that Damen minds this, not at all- in fact, he finds himself actually enjoying the companionable silence, broken only by the scrape of Laurent’s highlighter against paper and the occasional chuckle from Damen. Oh, the pits he’s been cast down to)

When he looks up next, Laurent is already staring at him, eyes fond and slightly puzzled and lips glistening with residual gloss. “Why don’t you go in and start a movie or something? I’m almost done, I’ll join you in a bit.” Says Laurent, and the ghost of a smile at the corner of his lip does all kinds of wonderful things to Damen’s heart and he’s just-

“It’s okay,” he says, meaning it with every fibre of his being.

“I’d much rather stay here with you.”

+1

If there’s one aspect of Laurent that Damen would much rather stay away from, it’s his anger. He’s been on the receiving end of that acerbic wit- extra deadly after being sharpened by venomous rage- way too many times in the initial months before they started dating, before Laurent had opened up like the most beautiful flower and shown him what he was _really_ like, under all those layers of thorns he wore like a protective coat on most days. And while Damen is now used to the anger, knows how to sidestep obvious traps to extract the main reason behind Laurent’s hurt, it’s clear the poor senior being shouted down on- despite the fact that he’s actually taller than Laurent- isn’t.

Only Laurent would be confident enough in himself to take on someone both older and physically stronger than him _._ Damen is oddly proud of him, and actually considers waiting by the doorway for a little while so he can see this (frankly hilarious) scene unfold.

“If you had even an ounce of wit under that macho man persona, you’d realise how what you did could’ve shorted the entire lab- thus effectively setting us back by almost a month, not to mention the material damages on the prototype electrical fixtures on the ROV hand. I know it’s hard to believe everything can’t be fixed with daddy’s money, but you have got to stop whor-“

“Hey, Laurent, there you are!” Says Damen, barely keeping the smile off his lips as he prevents Laurent from landing into what is dangerously veering towards a workplace harassment case. He can tell from his expression that he is _not_ glad for the interruption, but he ignores the glares sent his way to peck him quickly on his lips and grab his clenched fists in his hands. “I’ve been looking all over for you, love.” He says, as if he hadn’t been standing outside Laurent’s lab for the past ten minutes- half for Laurent himself, and half for the thundering senior, who probably should see that Laurent is capable of being something more than an uptight angry person.

“I’ve booked us a table at that restaurant you like, and I wouldn’t want us to be late for the reservation, especially since you have that talk tomorrow morning.” He continues, beginning to feel a giddy ridiculousness settle over him as he all but forces Laurent into his coat and starts to drag him out of there before he can wreck any more damage to the poor senior’s ego- and his own reputation ( _what? Damen has arrived early on occasion and… heard things)._ Just at the door, he turns around to stare at the gaping senior, making sure to flex his bicep in an intentionally unintentional display, before saying- with all the hostility he can muster- “If you knew what’s good for you, you’d never step into this lab again.”

And then he’s off, Laurent tucked under his arm like he’ll escape somehow, and it isn’t till they’ve reached the elevators of the building that Damen realises that Laurent is actually _laughing._

“What, why are you laughing at me?” says Damen, perfectly aware of how whiny he sounds and not caring a bit in the moment. Except that only makes Laurent laugh harder, until he’s leaning against the closed elevator doors to keep himself from tipping over (Damen half wishes the doors would open just so _he’d_ have something to laugh about then). “Oh, I love you so much.” Laurent says, laughter still dancing in his eyes as he steps into Damen’s personal space and presses his smile against his lips, making Damen forget all about- well everything, really. For a second, he loses himself in this- the simple press of Laurent against him, hands in appropriate places, adrenaline pulsing through him like the warmth of Laurent’s laugh- before the elevator dings and Laurent pulls away so they can board it.

“You know, he wasn’t actually fired.” Laurent says, the words carried over on the last vestiges of a chuckle. “I was only being that angry to scare him into never making that mistake again, but I was probably going to slow down and let him beg for forgiveness soon.”

“I fucking hate you, you prat” says Damen, feeling his lips form into a betraying smile, even as Laurent throws his head back and laughs again, even his heart continues that contrary beat in his chest , laying his true feelings completely bare for everyone in the world to see.

Let them.

**Author's Note:**

> If this made you smile leave a kudos! Or a comment! 
> 
> love,  
> -N


End file.
